OT - Eating Horse ?

[preventec47]

Recently I put down a 22 yr old horse that had colic for a neighbor
and later dug hole with tractor and buried. The owner said it
weighed 1800 pounds.

I've killed and butchered a few doe but dont have any experience
with any other game animals like elk, moose bear etc.

While I was burying the horse I was thinking the whole time
what a waste of a bunch of meat and if not for humans at
least for the carnivores at the local zoo or dogs at the animal
shelter etc.

I know the French eat horse routinely and my thoughts were that
we know more about what the horse eats than what moose or
elk eat and thusly might not have a strong gamey taste.
Also I wondered if the old age might not have an effect on
the taste or texture of the meat. I bet domestic horses live
4 to 5 times a long as deer elk and moose etc.

I just wondered if any of you guys had any experience along
these lines as I bet that horse would have produced an easy
800 or 1000 pounds and I bet the backstrap tenderloins
would have been as big and pork hams!

[buckeyeshooter]

Horse is larger grained than beef and more of a lamb or veal taste than beerf. The piece I had was a bit tough but I don't know if they are all that way.

[Comal Forge]

Horse is eaten all over the world - except in the US in modern times (although they were eaten 150 years ago when people got hungry). The Japanese serve it raw, sliced thinly and eaten with soy.

When I was growing up in the 1960's, my dad's uncle on his mom's side ran a large ranch in northern New Mexico - near Ocate. They had several hundred horses on this ranch so would lose one now and again. When we were there one summer, a mare got wound up in barb wire and severely crippled herself. Uncle Jack fed and doctored her for a few days but finally decided she'd never recover so he slaughtered her and butchered the carcass similar to beef. He served the meat to the family, cooked just like steak. I remember my dad and I thought it was pretty good, but my mom would not try it.

I would not hesitate to butcher a horse for personal consumption if I had the means to process a large animal. We fed out cows here for personal use but I always take them to the butcher as I don't have the equipment to properly prepare one.

[ohwin94_61]

You all have got to be kidding

[wilko]

like Comal Forge said.. horse is eaten all over the world. You can buy it it any butchershop in holland, my native country... tasty!

[GANJIRO]

In Africa they eat zebra which is just a horse in funky pajamas. On the Big Island of Hawaii they have wild burros and until a few years back they were not protected and considered vermin so easy prey. About 30 years back a friend of mine from the Big Island brought me a bag of smoked meat and we had some with ice cold beer wild while waiting for the fish to bite. He asked how the meat tasted and I replied that it was delicious. He asked me if I ever tried eating a Jackass before which I of course relied "not that I know of", he replied "well you're eating one Now! At first the thought was a tad gross but after thinking about it 10 second I said "pass me some more".

[txpete]

I tried it in germany.nothing to write home about.german beer will make you go dumb things .
pete

[Andrew]

I have heard the same thing from all my buddies that have toured around to different global areas: "Mystery meat-on-a-stick" is almost always good, especially BBQ'ed. No need to know what it is.

[FWiedner]

This country is odd in some of it's ways, especially the way some candy-*ss urban sensitivites seem to bleed out into the general populace.

Horse used to be common meat, even up to as recent as 40 or 50 years ago, but the same dumbasses that decided that animals have rights and people are only caretakers, decided that horses are more pet than livestock, declared the consuption of such morally reprehensible and cruel, and then had it outlawed.

Most Americans have never experienced real hunger, and peoples in other parts ot the world each things and animals that make Americans gasp in disgust.

This attitude may be challenged if the food shortages being reported in a growing number of nations around the world ever reach our shores.

[Hobie]

I believe that any soldier who ate the tray-packs pepper steak had horse-meat. I've had horse-meat before and it had the same large-grained texture and sort of "sweet" taste. It is good.

When I was a kid I know they converted a lot of over-aged horses into dog food.

[Big Bore 94]

Dark red and very stringy. I am sure I had it in Europe.

[FWiedner]

Get a hamburger in Norway and then think real hard:

Have I seen any cows?

Maybe it was reindeer.

[brucew44guns]

A question we could ask I suppose, "Is all animal flesh good for food?" Is skunk, buzzard, owls, ant-eaters, gorillas, aligators and such, something we want on our tables---just because we found a special sauce or cooking method that makes it taste real good? Is the way it tastes the only criteria that is considered when meat is judged as to whether it's fit for human consumption? Apparently so with many people. However, just because a lot of people in this, and in other nations eat horsemeat, doesn't guarantee to anybody that it is fit, or was ever intended for human consumption.

[JohnnyReb]

I believe that any soldier who ate the tray-packs pepper steak had horse-meat. I've had horse-mat before and it had the same large-grained texture and sort of "sweet" taste. It is good.

When I was a kid I know they converted a lot of over-aged horses into dog food.

Guess that settles it.... I have eaten horse.....

[jd45]

Healthy horse meat is one thing. I used to see it in grocery stores here in the Chicago area when I was a kid in the 50s. This animal was diseased, if I read the post correctly, so I wouldn't've used it for food for any other critter, human or animal. Just my 2 cents, jd45

[Leverdude]

A question we could ask I suppose, "Is all animal flesh good for food?" Is skunk, buzzard, owls, ant-eaters, gorillas, aligators and such, something we want on our tables---just because we found a special sauce or cooking method that makes it taste real good? Is the way it tastes the only criteria that is considered when meat is judged as to whether it's fit for human consumption? Apparently so with many people. However, just because a lot of people in this, and in other nations eat horsemeat, doesn't guarantee to anybody that it is fit, or was ever intended for human consumption.

Meat is meat. Bout everything you can think of is eaten someplace or another & those places might not think cows or pigs or chickens are fit to eat. Its a cultural thing but its all fit to eat & intended for us if we want it.

Lotsa things might make me turn away, buzzards & skunks being a few, but I'd eat a horse. Cant see why not.

[awp101]

I saw something the other day where it was said there is a saying in China that says "If it walks, crawls, flies or swims with it's back to the sky it must be good to eat."

OTOH hand, there are parts of China where they'll eat anything with four legs short of a table...

[Longfin]

I would have no problem eating a horse. As stated, it was once a common practice in the US and still is in other countries. I have heard many folks,usually woman, even here in Georgia that won't eat venison, "they are just too pretty." Way too many people in our society have become so removed from the food chain that they have no idea where food comes from and they get all PC in their attitudes toward hunting and animals. I agree with the original poster( preventec) that it is a waste of meat that many hungry people would have enjoyed. By the way, a coliced horse is not diseased, just had twisted it's guts from trashing/rolling in response to indigestion.

[marlin shooter]

My mother has 2 cousin's who both love horses, 1 to ride and the other to grill. Don't know where he developed the taste though he did travel in the service. I have a friend who has several brother's and sister's and not a lot of money growing up, their father told me the kid's thought they were eating beef when they were young.
Karl

[stretch]

The only thing I've heard against eating horse meat, is
that some of the drugs put into domestic horses might not be
good for humans to ingest.


But I agree - 1800 lbs of horse buried for no good reason
is an awful waste.

I feel the same way about roadkill. Folks will hit a deer with
the car, and want NOTHING to do with the meat. I understand
if the animal is spread all over the pavement, but why not eat
an animal if it's not too badly banged up? I have with no problems -
my wife oldest kid enjoyed it too.

It seems a sinful waste to leave tens of pounds of meat to rot
just because we've become a little too "civilized" and squeamish.

(Didn't mean to hijack the post - just sayin'....)

[Big Bore 94]

Much of the "beef" served to soldiers was horse flesh. Dairy cattle tastes 75% better. China has spiced mongolian donkey. I am waiting on a friend to bring over some aoudad. Have not tried that yet? Rosemary,garlic and mint jelly????

[Rusty]

If God didn't want us to eat them, why did he make them out of meat?

[morgan in nm]

Its kinda funny to me that this topic came up because the low cost of horses over the last few years is because Bush banned the slaughter of horses for export. Because of this, people have nowhere to go with their older or crippled horses. I don't know of any processor who will even think about processing a horse. They cant even use the meat in dog food anymore because they were afraid people would eat it.

IMHO, I have ate horse meat, not knowingly. I would probably eat it agin if I were hungry enough. I guess thousands of mountain lions cant be wrong

[BenT]

There is no more horse slaughter houses in the U.S. The last one was shut down in Illinois about 2 years ago by a law pass by the Illinois legislature. PETA was behind the legislation to help these poor creatures. The funny thing is it has made life worse. People have no way to dispose of unwanted horses. So the starvation of horse cases are very high as people can't afford to feed . And there is a glutton of horses because it was very trendy in the 90's to have a 5 acre lot and a horse. Now the novelty has worn off.

In the early 90's in was good money to sell horses for meat. The French Canadians like to eat it. In fact Belgiums were very profitable , because they put on weight much faster than beef. If I remember right it was over was over $2 a pound . Good money. Now all horse prices are down because there is no slaughter prices to keep good horse prices up. Plenty of people out there who are just giving them away.

Horses still can be slaughtered for dog food . The problem is a marketing one. Some consumers want to know that there is no horse meat in thier doggy food.

Pres. Bush ( MR. Free trade) didn't come up with a bill to stop the export of horse meat. It was buried in a different bill that he signed . That's the same thing that happened in Illinois , in buried in a popular bill for something else. Regular politics.

[LeverBob]

This country is odd in some of it's ways, especially the way some candy-*ss urban sensitivites seem to bleed out into the general populace.

Horse used to be common meat, even up to as recent as 40 or 50 years ago, but the same dumbasses that decided that animals have rights and people are only caretakers, decided that horses are more pet than livestock, declared the consuption of such morally reprehensible and cruel, and then had it outlawed.

Most Americans have never experienced real hunger, and peoples in other parts ot the world each things and animals that make Americans gasp in disgust.

This attitude may be challenged if the food shortages being reported in a growing number of nations around the world ever reach our shores.

Bullseye

LeverBob

[horsesoldier03]

You have to admit one thing, a horse is one of the cleaner animals and ingest only grasses and grains. SOUND FAMILIAR! The horse was domesticated and while many may take issue with eating an animal that could be a pet sounds grotesque, I am sure they would think differently in a survival situation. That being said, I seriously doubt that I would order it if I found it on a resturant menu.

[dajudge43]

In between funky pajamas and short of a table, I beleive I'll call it a night!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Tycer]

This country is odd in some of it's ways, especially the way some candy-*ss urban sensitivites seem to bleed out into the general populace.

Horse used to be common meat, even up to as recent as 40 or 50 years ago, but the same dumbasses that decided that animals have rights and people are only caretakers, decided that horses are more pet than livestock, declared the consuption of such morally reprehensible and cruel, and then had it outlawed.

Most Americans have never experienced real hunger, and peoples in other parts ot the world each things and animals that make Americans gasp in disgust.

This attitude may be challenged if the food shortages being reported in a growing number of nations around the world ever reach our shores.

Bullseye

LeverBob

In all areas where starvation is present. Meat is meat. Even people is meat.

When TEOTWAWKI visits a society, people that can't pull their own weight become food. As do enemies.

Wassies prolly taste better than ol uncle Ed....

[Nate Kiowa Jones]

Meats meat guys. It's all in the prep. I've eat squirrel, coons, bear, deer, wild hog, shark, stingray, mullet, gafftop sail catfish, alligator, turtle, pink squid, octopus, crawfish (every year) and one of my all time favorites oysters on the half shell.
Horse meat? Sure, why not. If it's a sorry cut, grind it and make chili. That's how we ate the bear.
You guys need to come down to the bayou and pass a good time.

[ursavus.elemensis]

What is "TEOTWAWKI" ???

[gundownunder]

We dont normally eat horse in Australia, but an old mate of mine served some up at a BBQ one weekend and one of the guests threatened to punch him out after finding out what he had eaten. The guy backed off after being reminded that he had eaten three heaping helpings and loved every one of them. Feral horses, donkeys, and camels are hunted in outback Australia for the petmeat trade.

[FWiedner]

What is "TEOTWAWKI" ???

The end of the world as we know it.

[Old Shatterhand]

Horse meat is sold smoked and sliced as Hamburger Meat here in Sweden, and is eaten on sandwiches. I have also tried horse as steak, but didn't appreciate it, as it was a bit oily in the taste. Horse steaks are very seldom seen at the butcher's.

Sandwich with hamburger meat (The deeply red slices)

Old Sh.

[Jaguarundi]

Horsemeat is sweet and when ground a deep red.Yummy

[t.r.]

Years ago in Sacramento, I bought a box of heavily discounted frozen steaks from a guy selling from his refrigeration boxed pick-up. No USDA markings. Turned out to be horsemeat. It was okay if you marinated it for an hour or so.

I ate stir fry dog in Korea and Samoa. Much better meat!

Before you attack me with words understand this: Its a big world out there beyond borders of USA and things are different out there!

TR

[BAGTIC]

... However, just because a lot of people in this, and in other nations eat horsemeat, doesn't guarantee to anybody that it is fit, or was ever intended for human consumption.

I wouldn't want to argue with God about it.

Genesis 9:

2And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon all that moveth upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered.

3Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things.

[BAGTIC]

"Horses can still be sllaughtered for pet food"

Not in Kalifornia. Several years ago the idiots made it illegal. They also made it illegal to slaughter horses for human consumption. Also made it illegal to export a horse to another country or state for same purposes even though it was legal there. Of course that part is unconstitutional and certainly would never stand up in federal courts if someone ever contested it.

[deerwhacker444]

There is no more horse slaughter houses in the U.S. The last one was shut down in Illinois about 2 years ago by a law pass by the Illinois legislature.

Pretty often here in OK there's a story on the news about somebody that has gotten into trouble with the local law because they have dozens of starving horses on their property. They can't get rid of them and it's too expensive to feed them, so what's a person to do?

I feel sorry for some of these people as well as the horses. What are people supposed to do with an aging animal? Since they cant be sold and shipped overseas as meat, nobody wants to buy them. That leaves local folk to foot the bill for an animal until it dies of old age or until someone puts it down. Then it's either pushed into a ditch or left to rot for the buzzards.

That to me is the ultimate waste. PETA and the other agencies don't seem to see the ultimate wastefulness of not allowing the selling of horses for meat.

[t.r.]

Valentine, Nebraska has a kill barn licensed to slaughter horses. I'm told that many of the horses are ex-pets taht are unwanted & neglected.

Wild Horse Sanctuary in Fall River County, South Dakota has a number of solutions for unwanted horses.

TR

[Rusty]

Someone who read this pointed out to me that under the Law in Leviticus Ch.11 a horse is an unclean animal and not to be used for food. I was joking in my earlier post. I've used that line on several vegans I've talked to.

I read a book many years ago called "None of These Diseases" where a doctor IIRC went through the law given to the children of Israel and gave a scientific reason for many of the laws in the scriptures.

I also recall that during the time when the plague was wiping out much of Europe areas that were made up of Jews were not bothered by the plague. Many times this led to people accusing the Jews of placing a curse on a neighboring town. The real reason was that the Jews were observing the law and taking the waste "outside the camp" or town. No waste means no rats, which means no fleas, which means no plague.

I know there are times when I pay little attention to Biblical dietary laws but in this case I think I'll yield until I have to.
Now where is that fried shrimp platter...

[deerwhacker444]

Someone who read this pointed out to me that under the Law in Leviticus Ch.11 a horse is an unclean animal and not to be used for food. I was joking in my earlier post. I've used that line on several vegans I've talked to.

"And the swine, though he divide the hoof, and be clovenfooted, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you." Lev. 4:7


Because of that some Jewish folk are missing out on some mighty fine BBQ as well.. Oh well, more for this Gentile....

[Nate Kiowa Jones]

Meats meat guys. It's all in the prep. I've eat squirrel, coons, bear, deer, wild hog, shark, stingray, mullet, gafftop sail catfish, alligator, turtle, pink squid, octopus, crawfish (every year) and one of my all time favorites oysters on the half shell.
Horse meat? Sure, why not. If it's a sorry cut, grind it and make chili. That's how we ate the bear.
You guys need to come down to the bayou and pass a good time.

Oh and BTW, I've eat froglegs too but I don't see the point. They taste like chicken but much smaller. Why not just eat chicken. It's cheaper and easier to come by.

Things I don't eat? Liver, mainly because I can't tell it from a blood clot. Then there escargot. If you can't tell a snail from a booger ya might want to pass.

Did you know, Port Arthur is the capitol of SW Louisiana. We have more Cajuns here than Lake Charles. Many Cajun restaurants, nightclub and we even have our own Mardi Gras. I grew up here raised on shrimps and gumbo.

Here's a link to the music of this area.
http://player.warpradio.com/player.asp? ... treamRate=#

[jlchucker]

My parents and grandfather told of horsemeat being sold, over-the-counter, in a little market in one of the two villages in the town I grew up in. This was during World War II, when meat was rationed. The horsemeat probably was a bootleg effort by the local storekeep to get around the rationing of beef, chicken, etc. I don't remember any of it, but I remember the store. The old guy that ran it died when I was in grade school. Those local markets used to be everywhere, but now are just a piece of history. Just like those little towns are getting to be.

[rjohns94]

I rescued my mule, all 1600 pounds of him, from slaughter here in york pa. They still have markets and send horses and mules and donkeys to slaughter here. its a thriving business and every week they have an auction here for those animals off to slaughter in other countries. The drivers take them to mexico and canada for shipment over seas. there are 10's of thousands sent each year. Prior to the horse rescue act, over 100,000 horses a year were killed in the US for food consumption

[Bigahh]

Around here I have seen Mink Ranches that have trucks with power winches. If a Farmer has an animal that is in bad shape they call a mink ranch up, and somebody drives over to pick it up. I have seen it at a local truck stop with an 18 wheeler pulling a cattle trailer. The local meat packing company will not take an animal that doesn't walk out of the truck, the mink ranch carries a .22 Pistol to dispatch the animal then it becomes mink food. Did not believe it until I saw it 1st hand.

[Andrew]

I know there are times when I pay little attention to Biblical dietary laws but in this case I think I'll yield until I have to.
Now where is that fried shrimp platter...

I believe Paul said that "it is not what you put into your body that makes you unclean, but what is in you to begin with.". They were talking about eating catfish( which did not have scales) and he was explaining it to them. We can eat it all now.

I don't know that I would eat it(horse) if I had an option. If I was hungry and it was all I had, then it would be BBQ time.

[Scott Young]

if yall remember God told peter in a vision to eat unclean meat. i have eaten horse, in fact i am planning on butchering some this fall. i am in the process of checking the local laws here in mississippi. you can buy horses at the sale barn for $50.00!!!!!


that is a lot of meat for $50.00!!!!!!

[getitdone1]

Believe it was Peter Capstick who told about a grizzled old Mountain Man who had to eat his dead comrade to survive. When he was asked how he felt about eating human flesh he responded: "Hell, meat's, meat!"

Oh those mountain men were tough son-of-a-guns!.

Then there was the "Donner Party" I know many of you have read about.

Don McCullough

[kimwcook]

My mental state would be of serious concern to me being faced with famine or cannibalism. I know I would become a cannibal, out of necessity. I just don't know what price I'd pay.

Eating a horse. I wouldn't have a problem other than if it tasted really weird.

[Andrew]

My mental state would be of serious concern to me being faced with famine or cannibalism. I know I would become a cannibal, out of necessity. I just don't know what price I'd pay.

Eating a horse. I wouldn't have a problem other than if it tasted really weird.

Um...no. I am as sure as the day is long, that I would starve to death before eating people. I can't say that's right or wrong, just my decision.

Just thinking about it creeps me out.